


what you want, what you need

by trvelyans



Category: The Wayhaven Chronicles (Interactive Fiction)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Sad Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:47:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26334346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trvelyans/pseuds/trvelyans
Summary: “What?” Felix asks, frowning hard. “You’re on a date?”“What, is there an Agency policy against dating?" the detective asks before adding, "Something else my mother conveniently forgot to tell me?”“No, it’s just… What about Adam? Does he know?”“I don’t think he needs to know,” she responds, trying to sound casual about it. “And I doubt he’d do anything about it if he did.”Ouch. The insult isn’t even directed at Felix, and he still feels the burn.-Felix is a tattletale, and tries to give someone 900 years his senior dating advice. Set in between books 2 and 3.
Relationships: Detective/Adam du Mortain, Felix Hauville/Tina Poname, Female Detective/Adam du Mortain
Comments: 4
Kudos: 64





	what you want, what you need

**Author's Note:**

> (title from the song 'lover please stay' by nothing but thieves !)

Felix doesn’t really like patrolling.

He _used_ to, before Adam found out that he'd stop and chat to some of the people he passed by on the street and then gave Felix a stern talking-to in response. Now Felix only likes it when he can drop by the police station to see Tina, but she’s in the city for training, and he’d rather walk through town by himself than talk to the mayor’s kid, who's okay, if a little weird. (Tina, on the other hand, is _much_ more than okay.) Even though it’s a nice enough day outside today – warm with a little bit of a breeze, families and kids running around town carrying ice cream and popsicles and brightly-coloured cans of soda – he would much rather be back at the warehouse, bothering Nate or playing cards in the game room with Mason.

Or, if he’s lucky, doing both.

There’s nothing he can do about it now, though, so he whistles as he wanders down the sidewalk (despite the fact that his head is growing hot and sweaty under his hat). He should be heading back home in a couple hours, at least, which is one of the only consolations of his lonely patrol. Besides, even though he’s a little bored right _now_ , it gives him plenty of time to think about who he’s going to try to rope into playing darts with him later, because he just remembered how much he’s been wanting to put the dart board to use lately. He was thinking of asking Adam to play with him, but… well, Felix hasn’t seen much of Adam lately, at least not outside of meetings and training.

He has to keep up with his whole brooding thing like usual, so Felix gets it. Still, it’d probably feel really good to kick Adam’s ass at darts.

He’s just about to finish his second loop around town centre when he spots a familiar figure through the window of Haley’s bakery and screeches to a halt, squinting to make sure that it’s not just his eyes deceiving him. The person has dark brown hair, they’re wearing a light pink pea coat and... yup, that’s _definitely_ the detective. What’s strange is that he doesn’t recognize the man across from her, and what’s even stranger is that it seems like she’s laughing at this man’s jokes.

Felix sticks his bottom lip out in a pout. How funny does this guy have to be for her to laugh at his jokes? She doesn’t even laugh at _Felix’s_ jokes, and he’s hilarious!

Before he can think to stop himself, he’s striding across the street towards the bakery, carefully dancing out of the path of a few stampeding children on the way. He’s stopped into the bakery a few times before Adam’s scolding, so at least no one should find it too unusual. Unfortunately, he doesn’t manage to reach for the doorknob before he makes eye contact with the detective through the window, and she raises a perfectly manicured eyebrow at him expectantly.

Damn.

As Felix pushes the door open, the detective says something to her surely-not-so-funny companion and pushes back in her chair, standing up and walking over. “Felix,” she says when she reaches him, crossing her arms over her chest and cocking a hip. He’d feel a little disappointed about her greeting if it weren’t for the slight smile that pulled at the corner of her lips. _Ha. Seems like he’s finally getting somewhere with her._

“Detective,” he says, crossing his arms over his chest as well and leaning casually against the door frame as he gives her a bright smile. “Who’s the guy?”

“A date,” she answers.

Felix can feel his grin disappear. He knew that things had rough between Adam and the detective for the past couple of weeks, but… he didn’t know things were bad enough that she’d already moved on and started _dating_ again. “What?” he asks, frowning hard. “You’re on a date?”

“What, is there an Agency policy against dating?” she asks before adding, “Something else my mother conveniently forgot to tell me?”

“No, it’s just…” He reaches up and adjusts his hat, feeling himself shrink under her piercing eyes. No wonder she and Adam like each other – they’re the most intense people he’s ever met. Well, aside from Mason. And Rebecca. And Falk. And Murphy. But the detective and Adam are the same _type_ of intense. Speaking of… “What about Adam? Does he know?”

“I don’t think he needs to know,” she responds, trying to sound casual about it. “And I doubt he’d do anything about it if he did.”

Ouch. The insult isn’t even directed at Felix, and he still feels the burn.

“Where’d you meet him?” Felix asks, jerking his chin towards the guy in question. He has messy blonde hair and is dressed up in a dark grey sweatshirt (in the summer?), baggy jeans (with mud splashed on them) and shoes ( _also_ with mud splashed on them). No matter how funny he is – which he probably _isn’t_ – he certainly doesn’t seem good enough for the detective, at least at first glance.

He probably wouldn’t at tenth glance, either. And then Felix frowns, feeling bad for thinking that, because this man’s really just an innocent bystander. Or roadblock. An innocent roadblock.

“Tina introduced us.” The detective looks over her shoulder at her date, pursing her lips before frowning and reaching up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. “And I thought now was as good a time as ever to go out with him, before something disastrous inevitably happens.”

“ _Adam_ would go out with you,” Felix protests, sensing her unenthusiastic response. He’ll have to complain to Tina about this guy when she gets back from the city, because he has no idea what she was thinking setting the detective up with _him_.

With a sigh, she turns to face Felix again. “I should get back to our date,” she says, completely ignoring his statement and his distress that she’s on a date. “I only have another hour or two before work… which is what I’m sure _you_ should be doing right now.”

“Detective,” Felix sighs, “come _on._ I know that Adam needs a little push, but everyone can tell that he likes you. I’m pretty sure your mom even noticed.”

He can see a flash of alarm in her eyes before she clears her throat and glances away. Admittedly, he shouldn’t have mentioned Rebecca – their relationship is still as cold as ever, if not colder. Walking into a room with them is like getting off a plane in Alaska, and Felix would know, because he’s done that before. Still, he just wants her to know that she shouldn’t give up on Adam. He’s seen the way they look at each other – Adam’s never looked at anyone like that.

(Not even Felix, and, again, he’s _hilarious_. And adorable as hell.)

“Maybe Adam should tell me that himself, then,” the detective says, and Felix hates how sad she sounds. Before he can think of a reply, though, she straightens her shoulders and raises her chin, as if he weren’t feeling so much shorter than her already. “Have a good rest of your patrol,” she tells him, suddenly all business again. Whatever smile she had when she first approached him is gone, to his disappointment. “Try not to get distracted by any more gossip.”

“I won’t, Detective,” he responds, mustering enough energy to give her a mock salute as she turns on her heel and walks away, leaving him standing in the doorway and thinking about how badly he doesn’t want to go back to patrol. Especially _now_ , knowing this and how much it’s going to crush Adam if – or when – he finds out.

Still, he pushes open the door and heads back to patrolling anyway, but _only_ because the faster he can get it over with, the faster he can get home.

And play some darts.

* * *

Somehow, miraculously, he manages to rope Adam into it.

Nate is in the library for the night doing research about something that Felix can’t be bothered to remember, and Mason is off sulking on a patrol of his own, leaving Adam as Felix’s one and only option. It took a little effort, though, more than he’d like – a begrudging arm wrestle and a _very_ begrudging round of rock-paper-scissors on Adam’s behalf – but it’s well worth it, he thinks, standing back to watch Adam throw another dart… right into the bullseye.

Okay, well, maybe it’s _not_ worth it. He probably should’ve suggested pool, instead. Or Go Fish. He kicks ass at Go Fish.

“This isn’t fair,” Felix says, pouting as he drags himself over to the board to pluck the darts out. “You’ve had eight-hundred-and-ninety-three more years of experience than I have.”

“And more skill,” Adam replies. Felix’s not facing him, but he can picture the proud smirk on the other vampire’s face well enough that he rolls his eyes anyway.

“In some ways, sure.” Felix takes the red darts this round and hands Adam the blue ones. “But not in _everything_.”

Adam raises an eyebrow. “What does that mean?”

Felix stares back at him before looking away, smiling sheepishly. “Nothing,” he says. He’s been debating whether or not to tell Adam about the detective – he already told Nate earlier, who had very little reaction, and he’s planning on telling Mason when he gets back from patrol. He mainly told those two to complain about her date – who he still hasn’t stopped thinking about, because _really_ , what kind of human wears a sweatshirt in the middle of summer – but he could tell Adam to, well, force him to make a move! The detective is slipping out of his grasp, and he doesn’t even know it.

“Nothing,” Felix repeats anyway, entirely unconvincingly.

Adam leans back against the pool table, crossing his arms over his chest. “Just because Mason is our interrogations expert does not mean that I can’t also tell when you’re lying,” he says. There’s a hint of amusement in his voice, and this is the first time Felix has heard it in a while. If he spills the beans about the detective, it probably won’t last very long, a thought that bugs him more than he’d like to admit.

“Is there something you want to tell me, Agent?” Adam continues.

“Oh, that’s low,” Felix says, glaring at him. “And no, there isn’t, _Agent_.”

Adam just smiles proudly, which makes Felix want to tell him even more.

“Are we going to continue our game,” Adam says, “or have you had enough for one day?”

“No, let’s go again.” Felix stretches his neck from side to side and wiggles his arms to loosen them up, hoping that his failures of the first round were just a fluke. “I’m going to kick your ass this time, Adam, and that’s a promise.”

He plants himself on the patch of carpet they designated the starting line, sticks his tongue between his teeth and closes an eye like he thinks they would probably do in the movies, and, when he’s ready, winds up… 

“Yes!” He cheers, his dart landing on the triple point line after it soars through the air in a graceful arc. He didn't exactly get a bullseye, of course, but it’s certainly a good start for this round. “In your face, Adam.”

Adam rolls his shoulders and takes a wide step forward in front of Felix. “You say that as if I didn’t get two bullseyes last round,” he says, not even bothering to close an eye as he aims with his dart. “Are you sure you don’t want to quit while you’re ahead?”

Felix narrows his eyes. “Do it,” he says, and right as Adam’s just about to fling his dart across the room, he adds, “I saw the detective on a date today.”

The dart pierces the wall half a foot underneath the board before falling lamely onto the ground. Adam turns around to face him. “What?”

“I saw her at the café with some guy,” Felix says, forgetting the game almost entirely as he looks at Adam. “What happened with you guys? I saw you holding hands at the carnival a couple weeks ago!”

He almost asked Nate to join him when he spotted them beneath the fireworks, but he thought he’d give them a little privacy. He was expecting the news of their relationship to come out the next day, after all, or the day after that, or the day after _that_ … and then, to his surprise, it never did. Now they rarely even see her outside of Agency business, and when they _do_ , Felix can tell that Adam is avoiding her. _Everyone_ can tell that he’s avoiding her, even if no one else tries to bring it up. Which doesn’t make sense, because, for a 900-year-old vampire who hasn’t been with… well, anyone as far as Felix is concerned, holding hands is a pretty big step, one that he wouldn’t take with just anyone!

He says this to Adam, of course, who is as still as a statue, jaw clenched and eyes so distant that even though he’s looking at Felix, it feels more like he’s looking _through_ him.

“I get that you don’t want to get hurt, Adam, but she doesn’t either.” Felix tosses the rest of his darts onto the pool table. “You _know_ what happened with her and Rebecca.”

“We don’t know anything about their relationship,” Adam says stiffly.

“We know that they don’t have one, Adam!” Felix protests. “Why do you think she’s so distant? Why do you think she keeps pushing us away? You’re the only one who’s gotten close to her, and… and now you’re avoiding her! Don’t you realize that if you guys were together, then maybe she could be playing darts with us right now instead of hanging around with some guy? Or doing _work,_ bored and alone in the station?”

“Celan- the detective’s work is important,” Adam says, trying to sound calm even though Felix can see the veins in his neck threatening to burst, “and I’m not… I am _not_ avoiding the detective. I – _we_ – simply haven’t had the time to –“

“You can make time,” Felix interjects. “I make time to see Tina!”

He can hear Adam gritting his teeth – he _probably_ shouldn’t have mentioned that – and heaves a heavy sigh.

“I get it,” he continues solemnly. “I do. But the detective… she deserves so much, Adam. She’s smart, and she’s cool, and she’s such a badass. I know she doesn’t trust us a lot yet, or _like_ us very much, but sometimes I think that she’s just lonely. I think she’s just so _used_ to be lonely. And you know that I think Rebecca’s a hell of an agent, but…” He sighs, running a hand over his hat. “I hate thinking about Celandine shutting herself off for the rest of her life because of the way Rebecca treated her.”

“You don’t think I feel that way too?”

“I don’t _know_ , Adam, and that’s the problem! You can’t keep stringing her along like this – or the rest of us, for that matter – because eventually she’s not going to trust anyone ever again.”

He’s thought a lot about this on other patrols, or in the middle of boring meetings, or when he’s playing cards with Mason and Nate and Nate spends five minutes thinking about his next play. He thinks about it all the time, and now that he’s finally getting it out, he can’t hold himself back.

“You don’t understand, Felix,” Adam says softly, though Felix doesn’t know which one of them it’s for. “The situation… it is more complicated than you could ever understand.”

“Then _tell_ me. Help me understand! I told you that I want to help you, Adam, and I mean that.”

“You can’t.” The other vampire’s eyes have dropped to the floor. “This is something that only I and I alone can figure out.”

"And you better." Felix swallows thickly. “She’s not going to stop going out, Adam. I bet there’s a whole lot of guys in Wayhaven who would kill for a shot with her.”

Adam doesn’t say anything. For a long, long minute, everything is silent and tense, and Felix is too afraid to breathe in case it would upset Adam even more. That’s the _last_ thing he wants. He just wants Adam to be happy. He wants _everyone_ to be happy! One big, happy, goddamn adorable family!

He says this, too. Quietly, still scared of ruining the moment, but he says it anyway, in case Adam needs to hear it. Maybe he does, because he finally gives Felix the hint of a smile.

“I know that you want that,” Adam says, “and… I understand that Cel _\- the detective_.” He clears his throat. “I understand that the detective will not stop seeing human men. But -“

Before he can finish, the doors on the other side of the room fling open with a _crash_. Felix stops trying to hurriedly scramble for cover when Mason saunters inside, a lit cigarette already hanging from his lips.

“I thought it was supposed summer,” he growls, blowing out a puff of smoke. “It’s damn cold out there.”

“See anything suspicious?” Adam asks, clasping his hands behind his back. All business once again, Felix thinks. As quickly as the detective.

“I didn’t see any Trappers, if that’s what you’re asking.” Mason jerks his thumb towards the hallway behind him. “Your turn, Adam. Have fun.”

Adam turns around and gives Felix another smile – both a little sad and a little thankful – before striding across the room in a matter of seconds and closing the doors tightly behind him. As Mason wanders over and picks up a dart, throwing it straight into the bullseye without even pausing to look at it, all Felix can think about is how much he wishes he could talk to Tina about all of this.

**Author's Note:**

> ah ! hello, wayhaven side of ao3 ! long time no see ! (good rhyme)
> 
> if you follow me on tumblr you've probably noticed that a made a new canon detective to romance adam with ! her name is celandine - not mentioned in the fic because she and felix aren't on that level in their relationship yet, unfortunately, yikes - and she is. Well. certainly something. i'm hoping to write a lot of her and adam in the future so, if you liked this and them, keep an eye out for other fics to come ! and follow me on tumblr @ trvelyans if you don't already ;)
> 
> i'm so excited to be writing for wayhaven again !!! thank you very much for reading, and i hope you enjoyed !!!


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